General

A Turkish Airlines plane that took off from Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) heading to Istanbul, Turkey, last night (16) has safely returned and landed back at BIA after a problem with its landing gear. The airport duty officer reported that the plane landed at around 12:17 a.m. today (17). Flight TK733 left BIA at 10:00 p.m. yesterday with 202 passengers and 10 crew members on board. Shortly after takeoff, the pilot noticed that the landing gear did not retract correctly. The aircraft was then flown to the sea near Chilaw, where it flew at about 4,000 feet and a speed of around 140 knots while the pilot released fuel into the sea, keeping just enough to land safely back at Katunayake Airport. This process took over two hours. The aircraft, an Airbus A330 made in France, is one of the largest passenger planes. At approximately 12:17 a.m., the pilot successfully landed at Bandaranaike International Airport. As a safety measure, ambulances, fire trucks, medical teams, and rescue personnel were ready at the airport, and special boats and rescue teams were stationed in the Negombo lagoon. The passengers were safely taken off the plane and moved to nearby hotels, and plans are in place to repair the aircraft.